Deep-space optical communications

A major problem in deep-space communication systems is that of obtaining high data rates (of the order of 107 bits per second). This article proposes some design concepts that indicate the probable feasibility of achieving wide-band communications by means of the laser. The example selected here is a hypothetical mission to Venus, chosen because of its great brightness and, hence, high background-noise level. Since no earth satellite relay is assumed, the communication channel includes the atmosphere. The down-link is the one considered because of its high-information-rate requirement.